


Something new

by Kinioludek



Category: Borderlands, Tales from the Borderlands - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Drinking, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Neck Kissing, Partying, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-16
Updated: 2016-04-08
Packaged: 2018-05-27 03:47:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6268357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kinioludek/pseuds/Kinioludek
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rhys and Vaughn are roommates and they go to the same college. They're not yet together, but soon something changes and they are ready to research their relationship thoroughly.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> First fic ever! Enjoy.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rhys gets bad news and Vaughn comfortes him about it. Obligatory kisses.

        It was late afternoon on Friday. The light was shining through the curtains, dust dancing in a big living room. The house needed some dusting badly, but the roommates weren't too concerned about that. Vaughn was working on something school related on his desk by dim light, searching through papers eagerly for an answer to a quite difficult math problem. Rhys was sitting across the coffetable, going through the mail. Vaughn rubbed his eyes tiredly.  
  
"I'm hungry, bro. Do you want some sandwich?" he asked while getting up from his desk. Rhys mumbled something that sounded like "no", but he didn't ask again and went into the kitchen. Rhys was acting strange all day, but Vaughn decided against it.  
  
Rhys was staring at some papers intensely, lost in thoughts. He opened them slowly, his hands were trembling terribly. He began to read them and at the last sentence he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. Tears formed in his eyes and he forced them to not flow out, because Vaughn was still in the kitchen and he could walk in any given moment.  
  
"Hey, bro, are you sure you don't want any..." Vaughn asked, but trailed off, when he saw Rhys' face. "Hey, buddy, are you alright?"  
  
He was concerned. He was genuinely concerned and it caught Rhys off guard and he couldn't hold it in any longer.  
  
"Hey, hey, buddy, talk to me" Vaughn ran over to Rhys and cupped his face in his palm. "What happened?"  
  
"I just..." he stuttered "I just can't take it anymore. I'm tired. I'm tired of failures, because I am a failure. I'm tired of myself, of my stupid fucking mistakes." he trailed off, sobbing uncontrollably now.  
"What are you talking about? You're not a failure." Vaughn said like he really meant it and it made Rhys cry even more.  
"I am! I am... Just look at this!" he showed him the papers that came in the mail. It was from the university they were both in, even though they were studying different fields. He glanced at them rapidly. Rhys failed another exam and they were warning him about "the possible canceling of his courses during to his very bad grades". They even offered him some community colleges.  
  
"What kind of assholes... Bro, this is total bullshit." he looked at Rhys, who was still in tears "Hey, listen to me" he cupped his face in both hands and looked into his eyes "You are not a failure. It's nothing you can't handle, alright?" Rhys nodded, his eyes puffy from crying.  
"What if they do throw me out, Vaughn?" he raised his voice "Don't you know how this works? That programming teacher hates me! He's a literal nightmare! That's what happens when the teacher hates you, do you really think that..." he was cut off by a light and gentle brush on his lips. It took him a minute to proceed what just happened. He closed his eyes and gave in into the sweet sensation of the kiss.  
  
It was Vaughn who broke the kiss and Rhys was brought back to reality.  
  
"Rhys? Rhys!" Vaughn snapped his fingers in front of Rhys' eyes and giggled at how confused and flushed he looked.  
"W-W-What?" he asked, visibly baffled. It made Vaughn laugh even more.  
"Oh gosh! You're so adorable." that comment made Rhys turn even more red "I guess you're not mad?"  
"Mad? Why would I be mad? Oh, because of the..." he gestured at his face and burst laughing. Vaughn was surprised at his laugh and it made him question the right and wrong of what he just did. "Oh man! Now you're adorable."  
"Yeah, shut up." Vaughn took the papers into his hands "The situation isn't tragic, bro. You just have to go to Mr. Lawrence and talk with him about this." he advised.  
"But he's scary! It's the eyebrows of his."  
"Yeah, I guess he is quite expressive." he agreed.  
  
Rhys sighed. He held out his hand and grabbed Vaughn's. Vaughn jumped at sudden act at which Rhys said "It calms me down, okay, dude? I used to hold my mom's hand often."  
"No, it's fine. No worries, bro." Vaughn said and he beamed. Happiness radiated off of him and it made Rhys smile. They were both sitting on the sofa in the quiet living room for a few minutes, before any of them spoke.  
"So... We're cool, right?" Vaughn asked.  
"What do you mean?"  
"You're not mad at me?"  
"No, why would I?"  
"Because I... Kissed you without asking first and..."  
"Vaughn..." Rhys cupped his face in both hands and kissed him tenderly, properly now. "It doesn't have to be something bad." he assured him "But it is definitely something... Something new." he whispered and kissed him again.  
  
"Let's stay like this for a while?" Rhys asked and Vaughn nodded in response. He placed his head on Vaughn's shoulder and soon they fell asleep, their hands entwined together.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rhys woke up only to find out he has an important exam in 5 hours and he hadn't studied yet. Vaughn comes along to help. Afterwards, Yvette and the boys go out to celebrate.

Soft whispers in his ear, tender touch on his lips, lazily going lower his body, making him shiver with lust. He hears slow beats and guitar playing to the rhythm of the beating of his heart. The person’s lips are now on his neck and the music plays faster; he can feel his pulse beating quicker with the beat, his pulpits dilated. He reaches out to grab the person’s hair but they turn into spacedust and suddenly disappear with the wind. Rhys opens his eyes only to find out that he fell asleep on the sofa in the living room. The music he heard in his dream was in fact playing from the radio. But the person…

Rhys looked around. Vaughn’s not here, but he’s covered in warm blanket. He glances at big clock that’s hanging over the front door. 9 a.m. Vaughn must have left for classes already. Fortunately, Rhys didn’t have any till 3 p.m. He hugged the pillow that was laying on the sofa and rolled around.  
“Oh my god, oh my god, I can’t believe this” he said, blushing “I’m literally the luckiest guy on Earth.” He said confidently, but then stopped talking and hugged his pillow tightly. Second thoughts started to make him anxious. Questions of “what if’s” flooding his brain – What if Vaughn’s just playing with him? What if it’s only a one-time thing? What if…  
Sudden bipping went off, surprising Rhys. He looked at his phone and checked the source of the noise.

“TALK WITH MR. SCARY EYEBROWS” it read. Rhys laughed warmly. Vaughn must have wrote it in for him to remember, before he went out. Then the realization hit Rhys like a train.  
“Oh fuck” he jumped off of the bed and went into his room, not bothering with change of clothes.  
“No, no, no, fuck…” he checked the calender. Today. Today’s the programming exam.  
“No, no, no, this isn’t happening…” he checked the clock again and it was 10 o’clock. He had 5 hours before the quite important exam. “Ok. Ok, I can do this. Yes.” He said to himself and pulled out the books and papers.

It was 12 o’clock when Vaughn came back for lunch. He opened the door slowly and asked “Rhys? Are you there?” there was no answer.  
“Oh my god!” he exclaimed when he walked into Rhys’ room. It was chaos. A disaster. Paper Armageddon. Rhys was in the middle of it, his face on the desk, papers surrounding him from every corner. “Bro, are you dead? Say something, if you’re dead.”  
“Ugh…” Rhys grunted.  
“Rhys, are you alright?” Vaughn asked “What happened?”  
“Ugh…” was the answer. Rhys looked at his roommate “Is it you, Vaughn?” he blinked. He focused on Vaughn’s clothes. He was wearing a three-piece suit with a dark green tie. “Have I died and gone to heaven?”  
Vaughn said, amused “You wish. I had job interview, we talked about this like 2 days ago?”  
“Oh, right. Was it today? Sorry, I have a shitty memory.”  
“Yeah, I know. You have the test today?” he asked.  
“Yeah.”  
“And you haven’t studied yet, right?”  
“…Correct.”  
Vaughn signed. “Figures.” He took off his jacket and tossed it on the chair. “I can help you, if this has something to do with math.”  
Rhys blinked sheepishly, clearly lost in thought. He blushed then quickly took some of the papers that were on the desk. “I mean, yeah, yeah, sure, it does. It’s about robotic programming.”  
Vaughn leaned closer to Rhys to look at the papers, making Rhys heart skip a beat. “Oh, I can see some equations. Wait, dude, you’ve got that all wrong. Here, let me…” he took the papers out of Rhys’ hands and began to solve the math problems from the beginning.  
Rhys glanced over at his face. He remembered the dream and focused on Vaughn’s lips. They were moving, but Rhys didn’t hear a word. He leaned closer to him.  
“Rhys? Are you listening to me?” Vaughn said, making Rhys shuffle a bit. He hoped Vaughn didn’t notice the blush forming over his face.  
“Yeah, I am!” he said a little too loud. Vaughn looked at him, but Rhys couldn’t figure out what he was thinking, so he just said “I was… But I got distracted. What were you saying?”

Vaughn explained again the problem to Rhys and they sat like that with each other for about 3 hours. Vaughn's losing his tie and unbuttoning his shirt in the process.  
"Ok, bro, do you understand now?" he asked.  
"Yeah, thanks, bro. You're a great help" he answered "By the way... You look kinda nice in this suit." he smiled "I bet you'll get that job."  
“God, I hope so. I’d love to be a barista, even if only temporary.”  
Rhys nudged him in the shoulder “You’d be a great barista. You’ll get it.”  
Vaughn blushed and scratched the back of his head, trying to hide how much it improved his mood. Then he looked at his watch “Bro, you have test in like 30 minutes.”  
“Oh my god. Ok. Ok, I can do this. Let’s do this!” Rhys exclaimed and got up, ready as ever. Vaughn just laughed and left the room.  
“Good luck, bro.” he said as a goodbye.  
“Thanks!” and Rhys walked out the door. 

The exam seemed to last forever but at the same time 2 seconds. He wrote everything he knew and then some, just to not leave blank spaces. His hands were numb and painful after he finished and the test went to Mr. Lawrence’s desk. He smiled to the teacher and thanked him in hope it will improve their relationship at least a bit. “Always be nice to your teachers!” his mother used to say. Mr. Lawrence frowned upon Rhys’ thanks and got back to writing something in his notebook. His eyebrows made him look angry and Rhys suddenly felt less confident than before. He hoped it was only his imagination.

After the exam he met up with Vaughn and Yvette and they went to some pub down the street. They were in a festive mood, making Rhys feel like he already passed Mr. Lawrence's class.  
“We’re celebrating Rhys not being a wuss!” Yvette cheered, raising her glass “In hope he won’t be thrown out of the college.” She added and drank her drink.  
“Wow, you’re so good with compliments, Yvette, I mean, really…” Rhys said sarcastically.  
“Well, she’s not wrong. And I bet you'll pass, Rhys! We studied for so long, there’s no way they will throw you out!” Vaughn said, making Rhys anxious.  
“Yeah… I hope so…” he said, worried.  
“Hey! Get that grumpy face off and drink something.” Yvette said and ordered Rhys some colorful drink she drank before. “Oh and you’re paying, because I left my wallet at home.”  
“Great.” Rhys frowned, but when he drank some of the drink he felt better. “Man, this is good!”  
“Yeah, I know. That’s why I ordered it.”  
“Can I taste some of it?” Vaughn asked.  
One drink turned into three. Then five. Then after six Rhys stopped counting. He was too busy dancing with his best buddies anyway.

Three of them stumbled down the street, singing some pop song they heard at the pub.  
“Don’t stop, make it pop, DJ, blow my speakers up!” Rhys sang as best as he could.  
“Tonight, Imma fight, till we see the sunlight” Vaughn joined in.  
“Tik tok, on the clock, but the party don’t stop, no!” Yvette sang with the boys as loud as she could, laughing afterward.  
Three of them forgot the lyrics so they just sang “oh oh oh” while staggering on the sidewalk. When they got to the apartments, Yvette waved boys goodbye and went into her house. Few blocks further there was the home of Rhys and Vaughn. Vaughn opened the doors with difficulty, they both went in and collapsed on the sofa.  
“Goodnight, bro.” Rhys said before dozing off.  
“Goodnight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the song Rhys heard in his sleep was EASTGHOST - D'vocean and the song our trio was singing was Ke$ha - Tik tok.
> 
> Will Rhys pass his class? Find out more in the next chapter. ;)
> 
> And yeah, study for your exams, guys!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morning after the party, Rhys talks with Vaughn about his dream.

It was early morning and the sun was shining bright, birds singing by the big window. The light was coming through the curtains, illuminating the room. It was quite messy, because of the events of last night. Rhys stretched and slowly opened his eyes, his vision blurry and the light blinding. He looked at Vaughn next to him, still deep in his sleep. He smiled to himself, thinking of last night. They were dancing like the world was going to end the next day, not caring who looked at them. Rhys laughed to himself. They must have looked quite ridiculous, especially him with his long legs like some kind of dancing spider.

Vaughn shifted a little on the sofa and it made Rhys focus on him more. He was looking at his face, studying every detail, smiling to himself. He could smell his strawberry shampoo, his senses going wild. Then Vaughn seemed to be waking up, so Rhys quickly closed his eyes and pretended to sleep. Vaughn opened his eyes, smiling at the sight before him, then Rhys opened them shortly after.  
“…Hey there.” He said, smiling slyly.  
“Hi.” Vaughn replied. “How’s your morning?”  
“It’s good so far.” He said, licking his lips.  
“I don’t party often, but it was definitely something.” Vaughn said, not seeming to notice Rhys' expression.  
“Haha, yeah.” Rhys said, beaming.  
“Like that time Yvette just jumped on the dancefloor and started dancing towards us with a grin on her face, that was so funny.”  
“Hahaha, yeah, and you went to her! I didn’t even have to encourage you, that much anyway.”  
“You always had a way with words.”  
“I guess.”  
“Don’t be so modest.” he smiled, while getting up. Rhys yawned and got up as well.

Vaughn talked about the party some more, like the time when they sang their favourite song so loud, they were thrown out of the bar. Rhys just looked at him like he was the entire world, listening, but not hearing much. He focused on his lips, on his dreamy, glossy lips, that just waited for someone to kiss them.  
“You know, I had a dream about you.” Rhys stated. Vaughn looked at him, curious.  
“Like literally or…” Vaughn asked.  
“Yes, you nerd, like I was sleeping and had a dream. I didn’t dream about meeting you one day.” Rhys blushed slighty. “It wasn’t technically you, but I could feel that it was you.”  
“Was the dream inappropriate?” Vaughn said, smiling slyly.  
“No, oh my god.” Rhys blushed even more. “It wasn’t.”  
“Ok, then tell me what I was doing in your dream.” He rested his head on his right hand, encouraging Rhys to continue.  
“Well… We were kissing…” he started.  
“Mhmm…” Vaughn looked at him, nodding.  
“And uhh…” Rhys blushed.  
“You told me it wasn’t inappropriate.”  
“It wasn’t! Well, in theory…” Rhys said bashfully.  
  
“Was I doing something similliar to this?” Vaughn said and cupped Rhys’ face in his hands, kissing him full on his lips. It was a sweet sensation and Rhys could feel his heart beat faster, his mouth wet from the kiss. He could smell his shampoo more intensely. Somehow he hoped Vaughn feels the same way, when he kisses him like that.  
“Hmmm… I don’t know, I think you should do it again.” Rhys chuckled, but Vaughn to his surprise kissed him again without any hesitation.  
“Am I doing it right?” Vaughn said, amused. That gave Rhys an idea.  
“Yeah, you went a little lower actually…”  
“Like this?” Vaughn kissed his chin, then went for a neck.  
“Yeah, you’ve got it…” Rhys almost moaned, but held it in.  
Vaughn laid small kisses on his neck twice or thrice, before the noise sang out in the room. Both of them were thrown out of the trance and they looked at each other, confused where the sound was coming from. Rhys looked at his metal hand. It was Yvette.  
  
“Wow, Yvette, this is perfect timing.” Said Rhys as a greeting.  
“Oh, god, thank god, you guys are OK. I thought you died from alcohol poisoning. I’ve been trying to contact you on your phones since like 9 am.” Yvette said, half worried, half amused.  
“9 am? Wait, what time is it?” Vaughn asked.  
“It’s almost noon.” Yvette answered.  
“Hahaha, wow…” Rhys tried to cover the fact that he was flushed because of what they were just doing and that Yvette could see both of them in equivocal situation. “Well, we’ve got really tired after all that dancing, right?”  
“Yeah, I guess…” Yvette looked at them. “Don’t forget that you guys have classes today. I’m not giving you notes again, Rhys.”  
“No worries, we’ll go.” Vaughn assured her, before Rhys could say something in defense.  
“That’s good, because I hate sitting alone in Mr. Lawrence class. See you outside, Rhys?”  
“Yeah, yeah, sure, I’ll be there 15 minutes earlier.” Rhys said. “Wait, Yvette.”  
“Hm?” Yvette asked, blinking.  
“Aren’t you surprised to see us… like this?” Rhys asked, confused as to why Yvette didn't say anything about this whole situation. She could see them through the eco-com on Rhys' hand, surely.  
“Oh, um… Not really? I thought you guys were dating for some time now.” Yvette said, confused by Rhys’ question. That answer was not what Rhys was expecting. Vaughn tried not to laugh behind the tall man.  
“Um, ok. You… Keep thinking that. Ok, bye.” Rhys said and hung up. “I can see you, stop laughing.”  
“Oh man… This is gold." Vaughn snorted, which Rhys thought was cute. He always loved when he did that, but not at this moment. "She was serious, wasn’t she?”  
“I guess… I don’t know what she meant by that.” Rhys shrugged.  
“That we’re totally bros for life?” Vaughn sticked out his pinky finger, smiling. Rhys smiled back.  
“Bro-tally.” Rhys said and entwined his own pinky around Vaughn’s.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's so short, I had the worst art block ever. But it's here! Have fun reading and comment, if you like this chapter. <3


End file.
